


Stargazing

by dontmindme_imafangirl



Series: Tumblr Angst Sentence Prompts [4]
Category: Voltron: Vehicle Voltron
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Canon Compliant, Canon Related, Canon Universe, Fluff and Angst, Insecure Lance (Voltron), Keith (Voltron) is Bad at Feelings, Keith/Lance (Voltron) Angst, Lance (Voltron) is a Mess, M/M, Mutual Pining, Pining Keith (Voltron), Pining Lance (Voltron), Team Bonding, klance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-14
Updated: 2017-11-14
Packaged: 2019-02-02 08:44:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,667
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12723327
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dontmindme_imafangirl/pseuds/dontmindme_imafangirl
Summary: Tumblr Angst Sentence Prompt: "That was an order" + KlanceKeith is still coming to terms with piloting the Black Lion.Lance wants to help.





	Stargazing

******

“Lance, I said _no_!”

 

“And I’m telling you this won’t work! We can’t take an entire fleet one by one, we need Voltron!”

“Voltron will put us in a more vulnerable position. We need to fight them independently until there’s no other choice.”

“Keith just _listen_ to me for once-“

“I said _no_ Lance. That was an order.”

 

Lance felt the breath get stuck in his throat at the words, so bitterly thrown over their Lions’ intercoms.

Was this how Keith wanted to lead? Was this how being the paladin of the Black Lion would go?

He swallowed his words, bit back the venom hiding beneath his teeth and sighed, mumbling a fine. This wasn’t the place to argue, and Keith wasn’t in the headspace to calmly talk to at that moment, and neither was Lance. 

The entire team had a long, _long_ fight ahead of them.

With a sigh, Lance pulled at the Red Lion’s controls, joining back in the fight with the hopes of victory in the back of his head.

 

*****

They came back to the castle hours later, bruises and fatigue littering their entire beings.

He felt Hunk’s pat on his back, congratulating him for a good job as he left the briefing room to get some rest, Pidge close behind him.

Allura stopped for a minute, smiling sympathetically at Lance before she too excused herself to go get some rest before she’d have to meet up with Coran and Keith to plan another course of action.

Lance stayed in place, waiting for the last remaining paladin to come through the hangar’s doors and into the room.

Soon enough Keith walked in, his hair tousled from the armour’s helmet that was now resting in his hands, the darkness under his eyes a telltale sign of his restlessness.

“Keith-“

“Not now Lance.”

“If not now then when? Can we just talk for a minute?” Lance persisted, coming to stand in front of Keith.

He didn’t want to fight him, not this time. Hell, he never really wanted to fight with Keith, not when they had that ‘rivalry’ going on, and especially not now that they’d become friends, now that the sight of Keith made Lance’s heart flutter with a feeling he refused to address.

But Keith was a wreck ever since he became the Black Paladin. He tried to lead like Shiro did, not realising that he’s _not_ Shiro, that he didn’t _have_ to be him.

 

Lance wanted to be a friend. A shoulder for Keith to support himself on.

“Look, what happened out there-I get it, you had your own ideas about what we should do, and you’re the leader now, but-“

“There’s no but! I did what I thought was right, and we _won_.”

“By a narrow margin! Keith I’m not-I’m not bitter or whatever you may think I am but you need to just take more things into consideration when we’re out there; Shiro-“

“Shiro isn’t _here_! He’s not our leader right now! I am, even if I never wanted to-“

“I _know_ , what I’m trying to say is that you don’t have to try and be Shiro-“

“ I’m _not_! Look, if you don’t like the way I lead then just-just find some other team to join or whatever.”

Lance paused, his eyes widening at Keith’s words, mouth agape.

Keith seemed to register his words a minute too late, his expression soon mirroring Lance’s.

They looked to each other for a minute longer, before Lance ducked his head, the beginnings of a bitter smile on his lips.

“Is that so.” he mumbled, turning promptly on his heels and all but running out of the room, a moment too late for Keith’s extended hand to reach him.

 

******

It was hours later that Keith found Lance.

He was sitting cross legged in the control room, the map of the entire known universe Allura used whenever they planned strategies activated and filling the entire room with a luminescent green glow, the projections of star clusters and widely different shaped galaxies scattered all around.

And in the middle of it all was Lance, his hands cusping one of the projected galaxies with a tender care, like one would hold a newborn child.

Keith took stepped through the stars and planets, coming to a halt besides Lance and sitting down, not daring to meet Lance’s gaze.

He doesn’t have to ask what galaxy Lance was just looking at.

“What, am I not allowed to be here too now? Are you gonna order me to get out?” Lance’s voice is hoarse, red rimming the sides of his eyes.

“Lance..” Keith started, uncertain of what to say, of where to start.

“No, it’s cool. I know I don’t offer much to the team anyway. Just, find another person to pilot Red and I’ll be on my way.”

That gave Keith pause, finally turning to look at Lance, noticing the way his shoulders stiffened and his jaw clenched.

“Lance-what are you talking about? Who ever said that?”

“ _Please_ , as if you need to say it. I _know_ okay, I see how talented and smart everyone on this team is is and then you got me-“

“No!” 

“-and I just don’t cut it. And now with Shiro gone you need the best of the best on the team if we even want to stand a chance.”

“And you _are_ that. Lance look at me. Please, look at me.”

Lance reluctantly did, his bottom lip clenched between his teeth, the fight against the tears in his eyes heartbreaking to see.

Keith sighed, lowering his gaze.

“I’m…I’m sorry for what I said. I was frustrated and upset, and completely out of line. I..I didn’t mean it, but I shouldn’t have said it.”

“You can just say you mean it, it’s fine-“

“But I didn’t mean it! God Lance, do you hear what you’re saying? You mean so much to this team, hell, I’ve never seen anyone take as accurate shots as you do with your bayard, and Red _chose_ you. _You_ , no one else.”

Lance snorted.

“She didn’t really have much of an option.”

“She wouldn’t have chosen you as a last measure. Don’t forget I’ve piloted her, I know her. And I know she has a pride of steel and a temper from hell and back.”

Lance winced at the words, bringing a hand to rub his temple.

“Yeah uh, I just felt her growl so she’s probably not happy you just said that.”

“She’s just angry that I’m saying the truth. Can’t guarantee she won’t throw a temper tantrum at you later though”, Keith snickered, earning him a sly kick in the shin from Lance.

“Yeah anyway” Keith continued, after he was sure Lance wouldn’t try and tackle him, “she’s not..she would never let you in if she didn’t believe in you.”

“I..I don’t know.”

“Look, when the Black lion chose me, what did you say? You say it made it’s choice and I should respect it, didn’t you?”

“Yeah but that was different!”

“Was it? Red made a choice, and I respect it. You should too.”

Lance gave a short huff but remained quiet, his gaze focusing back to the glowing galactic map instead.

He put a lazy finger onto the galaxy in front of him, twirling it around with a somber look.

“We’re…we’re really far away aren’t we.”

Keith nodded.

“Do you think we’ll ever go back?”

Keith took a moment to look towards Lance, meeting his eye.

He could say yes. He could say Lance would be able to see his family again, feel the rain and sunshine on his skin.

But he also knew Lance deserved honesty, more so than comfort.

“I don’t know. We’re so far away and fighting a war that’s spiralling out of control. We..I just hope we make it.”

“Do you want to? Do you want to go back?”

Keith thought of his shack, of the trinkets and photographs stocked in shelves and boxes, his bike that was probably left to decay outside the cave they first found Blue in. He looked down to his hands, remembering that purple glow on his skin that haunted him ever since.

“I do. Maybe not right now, but once I’ve found answers, found myself…I do.”

That seemed to be enough for Lance, who stood up with a huff, clapping his hands and closing the map with it, the green glow gone, the Milky Way disappearing along with it as the usual white light filled the room again.

“We’ll make it. We’ll go back. We’re going to win this, kick Lotor’s and whomever else’s ass we need to kick, and then we can all have some long vacation by the beach. My nieces would definitely love to braid your hair once they meet you.”

Keith raised an eyebrow at that, feeling his lips tug into a gentle smile.

“And I’d love to meet them too then.”

Lance’s mouth opened and closed multiple times yet said nothing, not even as Keith got up and put a hand to Lance’s shoulder.

“Please remember I mean it though, This team wouldn’t be the same without you.”

“I-yeah-yes. Okay.”

Keith dropped his hand from Lance’s shoulder as he turned to leave, surprised when he felt a warmth tug on his wrist.

“Wait!”

He turned around, taking note of how the tip of Lance’s nose reddened, his eyes blinking and looking anywhere but Keith’s face.

“Um, you’re forgiven. For being a stubborn mullet. And uhm, thanks.”

Keith tugged his wrist free, choosing to instead interlace his fingers with Lance’s as he turned to face the taller boy, an action he’d later on proceed to overthink of and feel his cheeks fluster at the mere memory.

“Anytime” he grinned, bringing Lance in for what was the first, and definitely not the last hug Keith would ever initiate.

If they both lingered in the touch a moment longer, well, then that was just for them to know.

 

******

**Author's Note:**

> #4? of Tumblr Angst Sentence Prompts :) another one to go!  
> this one's a little fluffier bc I was writing so much angsty stuff lately ^^'
> 
> Tumblr: dontmindme-imafangirl.tumblr.com (feel free to send me a prompt or just drop by and say hi <3)


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